The Parrot

Ask about the meaning of the CMCL parrot and you are likely to get many different answers. While it has come to represent different things to different people over the years, there is a story behind it all. In 1990, at about the time the newly formed CMCL was moving into its remodeled worship space, a parrot showed up in a fig tree that stood in the sanctuary. The colorful, but simple, wooden bird was purchased as a self-help craft store by a couple who were members of CMCL. It was purchased to provide “avian interest” or perhaps just as a fun conversation starter. The fig tree didn’t last but the parrot did indeed start a conversation. Without a permanent home to perch itself on, the parrot began a journey in search of a place to land. From week to week, the spot changed and began to create curiosity within the congregation. The distraction grew until the newly installed pastor, Vernon Rempel, decided to employ the parrot rather than compete for attention. Occasionally woven into message and sermon, the parrot became a familiar metaphor for anything from colorful and mysterious SPIRIT to unpredictable mischief.